''All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest'' (also known simply as ''Maresnest'') is a

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

and

concert film A concert film, or concert movie, is a film that showcases a live performance from the perspective of a concert goer, the subject of which is an extended live performance or concert by either a musician or a stand-up comedian. Early history The ...

by the English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Cardiacs Cardiacs are an English rock band formed in Kingston upon Thames by Tim Smith (lead guitar and vocals) and his brother Jim (bass, backing vocals) in 1977 under the name Cardiac Arrest. The band's sound fused circus, baroque pop and medieval mu ...

. It is their third live album, and was originally recorded in the afternoon in the Salisbury Arts Centre on 30 June 1990 with

Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch ...

. It is the only Cardiacs album to feature guitarist

Christian Hayes Christian David "Bic" Hayes (born 10 June 1964) is an English rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. Best known as the frontman of Dark Star and guitarist with Levitation, he has also released solo material as Mikrokosmos, which was produced b ...

throughout. The album was released on VHS in 1992 and as a live album on 1 June 1995. Napalm Death were recording their video '' Live Corruption'' (1992) at the same venue that evening, and seeing as both Cardiacs and Napalm Death shared the same manager, it was decided they could record two live videos in the same place for the price of one-and-a-half. The CD features two extra tracks ("Two Bites of Cherry" and "All Spectacular") that didn't appear on the video. ''All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest'' is the only Cardiacs album to feature the band as a septet. The lineup of Cardiacs which played this concert did not entirely reflect the live touring band of the time as Sarah Smith had left the band the previous year, but continued to tour with them until 2007. The show was

Tim Quy Timothy Graham Quy ( ; 14 August 19612 February 2023) was a British musician, best known as the percussionist for the rock band Cardiacs from 1981 to 1990. Initially the band's sound engineer, Quy first gigged as reserve bass player in 1980 and j ...

's last performance with Cardiacs.

Video

The video was directed by Steve Payne and produced by Steven Malitsky, for Fotodisk. ''Maresnest'' was officially re-released on DVD format on 2 September 2013, with improved video and sound quality. The last track of the Sea Nymphs' second album ''On the Dry Land'' (2016), "Wanky", first appeared in the 'on the tour bus' section of the film. The film was screened at the Barnes Film Festival on 20 June 2021, followed by an interview with keyboardist

William D. Drake William Derek Drake (born 7 February 1962) is an English musician, keyboardist, pianist, composer and singer-songwriter. He is best known as a former member of the cult English rock band Cardiacs, whom he played with for nine years between 1983 ...

hosted by author and journalist Cathi Unsworth.

Track listing

All songs written by

Tim Smith Tim, Timothy or Timmy Smith may refer to: Musicians * T. V. Smith (born 1956), British singer and songwriter *Tim Smith (Cardiacs) (1961–2020), English singer-songwriter and frontman of Cardiacs *Timmy Trumpet (born 1982), Australian DJ and prod ...

unless otherwise indicated. VHS (1992 release / 2013 DVD release) #"The Duck and Roger the Horse" #"

There's Too Many Irons in the Fire "There's Too Many Irons in the Fire" is the second single by the English rock band Cardiacs, released on 12 August 1987. Critical reception In the week of its release, ''There's Too Many Irons in the Fire'' was awarded "Single of the Week" in ...

" #"It's a Lovely Day" (Smith, Sarah Smith, Colvin Mayers,

Mark Cawthra Mark Cawthra is an English musician and record producer working in the UK. He was born in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, England. Biography Cawthra's first serious musical activity was in an early (unnamed) music project with schoolfriend ...

) #"Everything Is Easy" #"I Hold My Love in My Arms" (Smith,

) #"Arnald" #"Baby Heart Dirt" #"To Go Off and Things" (Smith, Cawthra) #"The Leader of the Starry Skys" #"Tarred and Feathered" (Smith, Drake) #"Fast Robert" #" Big Ship" #"Visiting" #"R.E.S." #"

Is This the Life? "Is This the Life" (also written "Is This the Life?") is a song by English rock band Cardiacs from their debut studio album ''A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window'' (1988). The song was released on vinyl by the Alphabet Business Co ...

Personnel

Adapted from the ''Maresnest'' liner notes. Cardiacs *

– percussion *

– lead guitar, vocals * Jim Smith – bass guitar, vocals *Sarah Smith – saxophone *

– guitar, vocals *

– keyboards, vocals *Dominic Luckman – drums Technical *Mike Smith –

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...

*Steve Malitsky –

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

*Steve Payne –

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

*Cardiacs – sleeve design

References

{{Authority control Cardiacs live albums Cardiacs video albums 1995 live albums